Food from my Kitchen
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Autumn
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Early Summer Recipes
Spring recipes from The Flavors of
Olive Oil
Autumn
The friend who gave me a half bushel of quinces also
told me about a Finnish steamer-juicer called Mehu-Liisa (available
at Podunk.com, see Useful
Tools ). Quinces are an old-fashioned fruit, golden apple-like
in shape and color, but very hard (though highly aromatic). Cutting
and peeling quinces before cooking them down is hard work, although
the Quince Compote in Deborah Madison's book, The Savory Way,
almost makes it worth it. The great advantage of the steamer-juicer
is that the quince can be left whole or quartered but unpeeled and
uncored.
Fourteen quince, quartered but complete with peel, seeds, and core
were set in the steaming basket above the juice collector and boiling
water. Two hours of steady steaming later, I had three quarts of pure
rosy quince juice. I poured it into sterilized jars and left it until
I was ready to make jelly. Because quince, like apples, have a high
natural pectin content, I knew I only needed to add a close-to-equal
amount of sugar to the juice to make jelly.
Quince Jelly
Rose-colored delicate flavors of quince, vanilla, and spices elevate
toast or scones to new levels.
In a large, heavy and wide confiture pan or
kettle, cook down the quince juice with the other ingredients, stirring
as necessary over medium-low heat. As the jelly cooks down, sterilize
one dozen half-pint jelly jars and covers, and a larger jar as well
for immediate use. Cook until the mixture thickens and reaches the
jelly point by sheeting off a spoon. Ladle into the hot sterile jars,
wiping the edges of the jar to protect the seal, and seal, following
jar manufacturers instructions. Use the big jar to hold any excess
jelly, and use it first. Keep it refrigerated; the jelly will last
for at least three months. Jelly in sealed sterile jars will last
for at least a year.
Early Summer
My trip to Turkey in May was filled
with flavors. It's been a pleasure to reproduce them at home.
Grilled, Butterflied Leg of Lamb, Turkish Style
This is a festive grill meal, easy to prepare and guaranteed to wow
guests with its exotic and easy-to-like flavor. Get your butcher
to bone, butterfly, and trim the lamb so that it's one fairly even
slab, and start it soaking in the marinade in the morning of the night
you plan to grill. This is enough marinade for a 5-7 pound leg, weighed
with the bone-in. Serves 8 people.
The All-Purpose Great Turkish Marinade:
4 tablespoons whole milk plain yogurt
4 tablespoons olive oil
10 cloves garlic, minced fine
2 teaspoons hot paprika mixed with 2 tablespoons tomato paste OR 2
tablespoons Turkish chili paste (available in Middle Eastern groceries)
juice of lemon, with the squeezed lemon then cut into wedges and added
2 teaspoons dried mint
2 teaspoons thyme
Mix the marinade ingredients together and spread it on both sides
of a flat piece of meat, whether a butterflied leg of lamb, a butterflied
frying chicken, chicken pieces, or lamb cubes. Place in a flat pan
such as a roasting pan, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for
at least three hours and preferably for 6-8 hours. Bring to room
temperature before grilling.
Grilled Side Vegetables
(to be cooked alongside the leg of lamb)
2 large eggplants, sliced into long strips 1/2 inch thick
4 tomatoes, cut in wedges
olive oil for basting and for dressing the cooked vegetables
lemon wedges
Slice the eggplants just before you are ready to cook them, to avoid
any bitterness. When the grill is hot, quickly brush the vegetable
pieces with a little olive oil and place around the perimeter of the
grill.
When the eggplant is brown on one side and when the tomatoes are wrinkled,
turn each vegetable to cook on the other side. Remove from the grill
when done, and set on a platter to cool. Drizzle with a full-flavored
olive oil and place lemon wedges on the plate. Sprinkle with salt
and freshly ground pepper to taste.
Grilling Instructions
Prepare and clean grill and grate, if necessary. Lightly oil the
grate. Light charcoal and let it burn until it is gray and ashed
over. Mentally divide the grill in half, and distribute the hot coals
in two layers -- a high-heat double height layer, and a lower heat
single layer. Cover the grill for five to ten minutes to distribute
the heat. Carefully place the slab or lamb over the highest heat
to sear, while placing the vegetables on the lower heat area. Cover
and cook for ten minutes. Check the meat and vegetables -- both will
probably be ready to turn. The meat should have small char marks
and a cooked aroma; the vegetables should be wrinkled and marked by
the grill. After turning, cook the vegetables perhaps five minutes
more, and the meat another ten or fifteen minutes, depending on thickness
and doneness requirements. Pinkish meat in the center is the ideal.
Butterflied Chicken under a Brick, Turkish Style
This marinade works very well with butterflied whole
frying chickens too. To butterfly a chicken, cut along both sides
of the backbone with poultry shears or a sharp knife, and remove it.
Lay the chicken flat on a cutting board, and make small cuts along
the shoulder and thigh to allow the chicken to lay flat. Cover with
marinade, as above, taking care to smear marinade under the skin along
the breast. (To do this, loosen the skin with your fingers by putting
your hand between skin and meat, gradually pulling them apart. Use
a small spatula or your fingers to apply the marinade).
Wrap a brick or a cast iron frying pan with silver foil, and have
it ready to place on top of the chicken as it cooks— its purpose
is to weigh down the bird to keep it flat on the grill.
Follow the grilling instructions above, adjusting the timing to insure
that the chicken is cooked through without any traces of pink, about
25-30 minutes in all. The timing will depend on the size of the bird
and the heat of the fire. Carefully cut into the leg to determine
doneness— if there is any trace of pink, keep cooking until done.
Lamb Shish and Vegetable Kebobs
You can cook mixed lamb and vegetable kebobs; you can also make up
all-vegetable skewers for those who prefer to avoid meat. If possible,
use long metal skewers (available in grocery stores and kitchenware
shops). If you have to use wooden skewers, be sure to soak them in
water for 10-15 minutes before threading them with food to insure
that they won't catch on fire. Always leave room at the end of the
skewer to rest on the edge of the grill, to make it easier to turn
them as they cook. A long-handled pair of tongs and mitten potholders
make this step less dangerous. Avoid overloading skewers to prevent
food from falling off. If food does fall, however, those tongs will
make it easy to retrieve cooked meat and vegetables.
To serve 8-10 when accompanied by saffron rice
2 pounds lamb, cut in pieces about two inches by three inches
1 large red onion, cut in wedges
1 red pepper, seeded and cored and cut into 1 inch strips
2 tomatoes, each cut into eight wedges
Marinade the lamb cubes in the above marinade in the refrigerator,
for at least three hours or overnight. Cut the vegetables as instructed,
and thread onto skewers, alternating vegetables, and allowing two
pieces of lamb per skewer. If desired, make some skewers all-vegetable.
Grill over a single layer of very hot coals, turning skewers with
tongs as necessary. As skewers are cooked, place on a platter of
golden saffron rice (recipe follows).
Safron Rice
2 cups white "Texmati" Basmati rice
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, or a good pinch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried mint
1 teaspoon butter
1 teaspoon fruity olive oil
1/4 cup blanched slivered almonds for garnish
Rinse the rice until the water is clear. Soak the rice for ten minutes,
and drain. Add the rice to a heavy bottomed pot and add four cups
of cold water and salt. Bring to a full boil, add the salt and saffron
and stir to distribute the color and flavor. Cover the pot tightly,
and turn the heat to low. Cook until done, about ten or fifteen more
minutes if the rice was well-soaked. Mound on a platter, fluff with
two forks, and sprinkle rice with dried mint, the pat of butter, and
the almonds. Serve warm, topped with meat and vegetables on or off
their skewers.
Grilled Swordfish Steaks a la Turque
Serves 6 people.
Serve these grilled steaks on a bed or rice or couscous, and grill
some vegetables on the side as the fish cooks.
3 (one pound each) swordfish steaks
fresh lemon wedges and good olive oil to dress the fish at the table
Marinade:
4 tablespoons whole milk yogurt
4 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons hot paprika (or Turkish chili paste)
juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon dried mint
4 tablespoons finely chopped mild onion
Cut each steak in half along the center to make 1/2 pound serving
portions. Mix the marinade and spread it on the fish about one hour
before cooking. (If you marinate fish for longer than three hours,
it "cooks" in the marinade and becomes soft). Place marinated fish
in a shallow pan and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for an
hour.
Remove fish from refrigerator to come to room temperature. Heat grill
to high heat. Oil the cooking grate, and grill the fish, covered,
for about seven minutes per side. Fish is done when it is charred
by the grill, opaque, and flakes easily.
Serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon and pass the olive oil to drizzle
on top.
